I See The Light
by suweetopopato
Summary: Mabel is excited to find a date for an upcoming romantic festival in the town, but everything turns upside down when the dream demon Bill Cipher appears, and how he slowly starts to turn her life into something more interesting. (MaBill, or, Mabel x Bill).
1. The Lantern Festival

So, this is my second Gravity Falls fanfic, but this is my first MaBill themed one! I hope you all enjoy, and thanks for picking this one to read! ^_^

P.S. Everyone in the fanfic are a year older, so Mabel and Dipper are both 13 now.

* * *

"Dipper! Dipper! You got to check this out!"

Mabel screamed down the hallways, flinging a piece of paper in her hands. The eager 13 year old raced down to the living room, where she knew her twin brother was watching T.V. Dipper was resting casually on the large sofa chair, watching one of Gravity Falls' weird television programs. He glanced over to his sister who jumped though the doorway and landed face first on the floor. Dipper cringed for a second as Mabel laid there, quiet.

"Mabel..?" Dipper started, but Mabel rose from her position on the floor a few quiet seconds later, rising like a zombie. She then threw her hand towards Dipper, unveiling a peculiar advertisement in her hands. "Read it, read it!" Mabel cheered. Dipper took the piece of paper and read the words and context out loud:

 **COME ONE, COME ALL TO THE FESTIVAL OF LANTERNS IN GRAVITY FALLS!**  
Dear Gravity Falls locals and tourists, we are announcing the most special event of the season (besides Summerween), which is the Festival of Lanterns!  
Come with your loved ones (or your significant other, oh la la~) and walk around town looking at all the lanterns hanging on every street and every cableline! (We have permission to use the cablelines for the evening, and we are also supervising to make sure there will be no accidents).

So come on out and see the glorious and beautiful lights! Fireworks will be fired at the last hour!

 **When?:** Monday, July 24th, 5:30 P.M.-11:30 P.M.  
 **Where?:** Gravity Falls Main Center, near the Gravity Falls Chapel  
 **What?:** Lantern viewing, personal lantern crafting, other lantern stuff

The young boy raised an eyebrow after reading the poster. "Lantern Festival?" Dipper said to himself. "There was no Lantern Festival when we first came here and when we left."

"It's only because the festival happens every 4 years, Dipper!" Mabel explained, sitting on top of the chair's arm rest. "This means this is my chance to find someone to date! I can forget all the mistakes from last year's summer romances and find new ones!"

Dipper rolled his eyes at Mabel's supposed plan. _Not again._

Dipper threw the poster aside, and continued watching the program displayed on the old television. He didn't really bother with Mabel's love life, but he had to get in it if the boy was starting to harm or turn Mabel's life around in a negative way. "I don't know, Mabel..." Dipper started. "I might skip out on this one. I have better things to do than see a bunch of lanterns around the town."

Mabel's face practically dropped. "Aw, c'mon, Dipper!" Mabel complained, grabbing onto Dipper's arm and shaking it. "It's going to be so much fun!"

"It doesn't sound like it," Dipper replied back, shrugging Mabel's hand off of him. "Maybe next time, Mabel. I'm sure you can find a date until the day."

"But it's so close! Today's Friday, at the festival is on Monday; it's only 3 days away!" the girl sighed, and she collapsed onto the floor again. "I need to find a date right now!"

Mabel rose from the floor and rushed over to the side where Dipper carelessly threw the poster and picked it up, and ran over to the door and opened it, slamming it behind her when she left.

Dipper pretended none of that ever happened, and grabbed the T.V. remote to switch channels. "Better, things, to, do..." Dipper sang, staring at the switching programs. He did have second thoughts on maybe coming, just for his sister, but he didn't care about that right now.

* * *

"This is priceless."

Bill's voice echoed throughout the black and white room, different screens surrounding him showing the different activities of Crescent Fished-Tailed Moon, Question Mark, Pine Tree, Llama, and so forth. However, he was attached to the screen that showed the child psychic and his whereabouts.

Bill looked at the young Gideon taking a baby nap in his prison cell, chuckling at how the child snored in his slumber. In a monotone universe like Bill's, it was hard to find something funny to get entertained at. "Ah, Eyed Star, you're making me cry," Bill laughed, removing a tear from his eye. "Seriously, sometimes I wish you could stop breathing. Literally." Bill continued to laugh as the boy turned around in his sleep, like a pig in a mud bath.

This was how Bill spent his Friday afternoons.

Then, out of no where, a new screen flashed in front of the dream demon, in mysterious cryptic writing Bill ciphered as 'Shooting Star Viewpoint'. There was something going on in Mabel's life Bill had to ruin and spy on.

Swiping the snoring child away, Bill tapped on the flashing screen and it quickly faded to a 3rd person view of Mabel strolling down the town. She was holding a piece of paper in her hands, and looking at it with pride and joy. Bill squinted his eye to see what the paper read, and he realized it was an advertisement for one of his favorite events in the town- The Festival of Lanterns.

"And what does she want from this festival?" Bill asked himself, as he tapped on the screen two times to hear Mabel speak.

"Gonna find a date, gonna find a date," Mabel sang, skipping down the sidewalks. "Gonna find a date for the festival!" She continued to recite the words in a melodic tone as it started to flood inside the bland universe. Bill started to find it annoying, but an idea came into his mind.

The dream demon's eye widened. _So Shooting Star wants a date... for one of my favorite festivals._

"Oh, this is scandalous." the demon schemed.

Bill quickly held his index finger on the screen, as a small tab showed an option to track down and follow Shooting Star's whereabouts, activities, thoughts and dreams. With no turning back, Bill chose the 'yes' option, and a bright and glowing yellow frame ignited around Shooting Star's viewing log. Bill tapped his fingers like an evil mastermind as he stared at the cheery 13 year old girl who he was going to play with.

"Let's play Love Games, shall we?" Bill said.

* * *

Mabel continued strolling down the streets, giving quick stares of delight when she saw a cute boy near her or faraway from her. She also noticed there were more tourists than usual, and she guessed they were here for the festival. _More boys to flirt with then,_ Mabel cheered in her head.

Gravity Falls seemed to be more happier than usual, but Mabel was aware of the locals and the supernatural in the town that still existed. A lot has changed since she first came here, such as the Mystery Shack selling grappling hooks and themed items based off of her brother and herself, Wendy's haircut (which only been shortly trimmed), and how Pacifica occasionally said 'hi' whenever she walked by Dipper or Mabel. But so far, it's been nice visiting her new favorite town in America, and how she was super excited for what seemed to foreshadow her future romantic life- The Festival of Lanterns.

Suddenly, Mabel stopped skipping in her tracks and her eyes locked on the most cutest boy she saw for today. He had a cute and shiny auburn colored mane, tied into a small pony-tail, and she noticed that he was taking a few pictures of the town with happiness glued to his face. He looked around Mabel's age, so Mabel thought she would get that boy for sure. "Hot boy, here I come!" Mabel beamed.

The girl made a ran for it, tried to make her running steps quieter so she can make a gentle and quiet approach, as her heart started racing as she got closer and closer to the cute boy photographer.

But suddenly, something bright and yellow bumped in front of her.

Mabel flew to her back as she got in contact with the sudden distraction, closing her eyes to get her conscience back. She laid back-flat on the ground and rubbed her forehead, where a stinging pain started to grow. "Ow..." she moaned, sitting up. Mabel then opened her eyes to see a tall and handsome young man with a top hat and a pyramid bricked patterned tail-coat, holding a black cane and one of his eyes were eyepatched. He bend down towards Mabel and offered a hand to her. Mabel also noticed that the world around her was completely monochrome, and her cheeks started to flush red because of the young man's handsome appearance.

"Oh gosh, are you okay?"


	2. Encounter

Mabel stared at the man in front of her, as the details of his odd look starting to seep though her mind. One eye. Top hat. A cane and bow-tie. She seemed familiar with the man's style, but she couldn't remember where she saw it. His look seemed to ring a bell, but she had a hard time to remember. Mabel took a few seconds that started to turn into minutes, just staring at the man with a clueless expression and wondering if she knew his existence before.

But suddenly, it came to her mind. _The dream demon, Bill Cipher_. Mabel said in her head. _This man looks like a human version of the dream demon I encountered with Dipper a year ago._

"Correct, Shooting Star."

Mabel bolted out of her thoughts to see that the man had his hand back on his cane, cancelling his earlier mannered action on Mabel. Mabel grunted and stood up, dusting off anything on her skirt. "Who are you?" Mabel asked, a bit harsh in her tone. She felt a bit annoyed that he gave up his hand to help her. Mabel also started to give up on trying to flirt with this male, since she knew his identity.

"You just said it." the man laughed, as he pulled out a pocketwatch from under his suit. He took a glimpse at the time, and placed the watch back.

"I didn't say a word." Mabel replied, now showing a bit of her annoyance in her tone. She preferred not to deal with Bill, especially after what he did to her and her brother in their past adventures.

"Yeah, but you thought it. You know what they say, what you think is what you speak, or, was it the other way around?" Bill thought for a few seconds, but Mabel started to walk away. Bill looked at her with a bit of curiosity, since it's been a while since he saw the girl. She grown to be somewhat taller, her hair got a bit longer, and she was wearing a thin strapped tank top under her large and fury sweater. Bill had to confess, she looked a bit hot.

Mabel tried to gather her surroundings, freaking out about how there wasn't anyone else in the town, and the boy she wanted to talk to wasn't there as well. It was only her and the illuminating dream demon in the monochrome world. She was starting to even think if time had stopped itself.

"Where am I?" Mabel asked turning around to face Bill. To her surprise, he wasn't there. Figures, since he was too mischievous to deal with. She turned back around and saw she was nose to nose with the demon, and she immediately backed away, avoiding any contact with him. Bill laughed a bit, and twirled his cane.

"We're in Gravity Falls, of course." Bill answered. Mabel gave a glare.

"This isn't Gravity Falls, Bill." Mabel harshly replied back. "Take me back to the real Gravity Falls. And why are you here anyway?"

Bill returned an annoyed look back, as he held his cane tight in his hand. "Is there a problem? I just wanted to see you, that's all." the demon concluded.

Mabel's eyes widened, shocked at the man's sudden words, but shrugged it off. "Okay, I'm glad to see you, too. Now please just get me out of here!" Mabel said that a bit too quickly, since she was eager to go home and back to the real world.

"What's that? Did you just say you were glad to see me too?" Bill asked, taking in Mabel's sarcasm. Mabel looked to the side and swore inside her head. _I knew I should've not said that, I don't have time for this._

"Watch your words, Shooting Star." Bill warned, intrigued on how Mabel started to react and interact with him. "I know what you're thinking. I know you want me to go away, and you do have an urge to go home at this second, but..."

Mabel stared at him, expecting him to finish. "What?" Her confidence and frustration started to fade into worry and fear- this demon could see everything about her.

"Apparently you admire my human form." Bill replied back, and released a giggle from his mouth. Mabel looked straight at the demon and growled a bit, but Bill did speak the truth. She was a bit attracted on Bill's human form.

"Just get out of my head, Bill." Mabel ordered, but Bill started to levitate around her. She watched how carefully and gracefully he floated.

"How could I when my image is framed into your mind?" Bill snickered. "You're starting to like my mischievous attitude, young lady. I might start to like you too, maybe..."

The thought of Mabel dating Bill made her sick. He may look handsome, but his overall personality was horrible. Her legs started to shiver when Bill's laughter started to turn into an evil chuckle.

"No, stop it, stop it..." Mabel now pleaded, as she closed her eyes and gripped onto the strands of her hair. "Please, just leave me alone... I want to go home now, please..." She was now completely scared of Bill, and confused on how her mood quickly evaporated into fear.

Bill felt like he was having a good time, pushing the 13 year old girl to her limits, but then he suddenly stopped, as he saw fearful images of himself killing her brother projecting in her head. It started to fade into darker thoughts, Bill starting to kill her friends and family, and that she would be the last one to get slaughtered. For once, Bill realized he was doing something wrong, and he also had the urge to stop his mischief. Mabel soon started to melt to the ground, the leftover thoughts of admiration of Bill being turned around into a nightmare. Bill started to stop floating around, confused on what he was doing.

 _I have been pushing people for years until they actually died,_ Bill thought to himself. _But why do I want to go easy on this one?_ He then thought that Mabel started to cry, which made Bill feel more miserable.

After levitating, Bill offered a hand to Mabel who collapsed to the ground and was attempting to wash off all the nightmares that flashed in her head. Mabel shortly opened her eyes and saw Bill's human hand in front of her face, and saw that Bill looked over to the side, red starting to develop in his cheeks. Bill could also sense the tense in Mabel's mind starting to soften, which made him a bit relieved. He honestly didn't know what he was doing, but he felt he needed to be nice to her.

Mabel raised her hand and placed it on top of Bill's. Bill helped lift Mabel up, as he slowly dropped to the ground so he could be face-to-face with the girl. Mabel stared at him, curious. Bill also noted to himself that Mabel's eyes were a bit watery, but no tears were shed. Bill was starting to get tense, since he didn't know what to do in front of the girl. _She wanted a date, and you're going to be it._ Bill thought. _But do actually want to be her actual and real date?_

He needed time to think this through. He needed to go back to his bland world.

"Sorry." Bill peeped, before he grabbed Mabel's hand and raised it towards his lips. He softly pecked Mabel's hand, and removed his grip from her a few short seconds after. "I'll visit you again." He saw a bit of pink develop on Mabel's ears and cheeks.

Bill's last words and his small and cute gesture made Mabel think about the demon in a new way for once. The demon glanced at Mabel one more time before lifting his fingers and made a loud snap, changing the worlds between them.

Mabel found herself lying in the middle of the sidewalk, the approximate location where she bumped into Bill. She noticed the boy she planned to flirt on walking away, and was heading towards a shop in the corner. It wasn't worth flirting with him though, since Mabel shortly saw a girl stride to him and saw her pucker a quick kiss on the boy's cheek. Mabel rose from her spot on the sidewalk, felt the poster paper still in her hand. She glimpsed at the words on the poster, her mind feeling a bit hazy. Was her encounter with Bill just a dream? Well, for one thing, she still felt a warm touch lingering on the spot where Bill kissed her hand. So maybe she wasn't dreaming. And maybe she wasn't imagining the urge to see Bill once again.

"But.. he's a demon..." Mabel said to herself, as she got up and started to walk back home.

* * *

The dream demon tried to distract himself. He kept on spying and viewing every aspect of each of the pathetic humans' life, he tried to crack up on Dipper's awkward shower singing, or attempted to feel pity for Soos's clumsiness. But he couldn't stop staring at the bright framed and large screen of Mabel in front of him. The girl was sitting on her bed, stroking and combing her hair, and her pet pig Waddles was leaning on the end. Bill also saw floating and small thoughts of himself haunting in Mabel's mind, but he also saw a few thoughts in Mabel's head thinking that Bill was just a misunderstood man. It made Bill feel a bit soft on himself, and he started to feel frustrated. Bill only wanted to play around with the girl, it was his job to make people's lives miserable- but he felt new feelings for Mabel after his encounter with her earlier in the day. One miserable girl made him think about what he does for a living.

"I just wanted to toy with her and now I'm..." Bill groaned, but he decided to let it go. He continued to spy on Mabel up to the point where she went to sleep. Her thoughts of him still lingered even in her dreams. Bill closed her log for a little while, and maybe even planned to visit her properly in the Dreamscape. But that was set aside.

Bill needed to distract himself from Mabel ever since he started to grew an actual liking to her, so he watched Gideon scheme another jailbreak plan with his other buff inmates with a bored expression. He didn't appreciate or even care about anything Gideon did except his hilarious outbreaks and tantrums, but any evil attempt the psychic tried to do made Bill easily bored to death. Bill decided to close Gideon's log for now and decided to fool around with him later. Shortly after, Bill closed everyone's log, even Mabel's for a while, as he sat down on the pitch-black floor and using a flame he ignited on his hand for a bit of light. He had to think about his life for once; and it was all triggered by a feeling he caught for a 13 year old mortal girl.

"A human," Bill started, staring at the blue colored fire. "I'm falling in love with a human."


	3. Dream Visit

Thanks to everyone who followed/favorited the fanfic! And also, thanks for the two guests who sent me reviews! Everything is deeply appreciated and treasured.

* * *

Bill couldn't believe what he was thinking. Shooting Star, out of all of humanity. He stared into the burning flame ignited on his hand, still thinking about Mabel. He curled up tighter into his ball, feeling the fire streaming though his system. Bill felt like his whole entire world froze around him, as only the image of Mabel flashed in his mind. He couldn't believe he was deciding to go easy on this one- it wasn't what a demon was supposed to do.

 _No, it's all going to be okay_. Bill told himself. _You will get to play with her. You will get a chance to ruin her life._

With a final sigh, Bill snapped his hand to extinguish the fire in his palm, and snapped once more again to bring up a log. The first log that appeared in front of him had the symbol of a shooting star, and a glowing yellow frame around it. Bill squinted his eyes so he could open Mabel's log properly, and swallowed a lump in his throat so he could get it over with.

As the tab opened up, it asked permission to watch Mabel's thoughts, dreams and life, and Bill clicked the 'yes' option and the tab responded by asking him to wait for a few moments. Bill stood up and fixed himself. He then realized that he was still in his human form, feeling the fabric of his tail-coat as he straightened it out. Bill didn't mind having his own flesh for a while, since it was the only form Bill could take during the whole entire Mabel operation. It was probably the only form that Mabel could've liked out of all of Bill's 'costumes'.

The log opened up shortly, unveiling Mabel sleeping soundly on her bed. Unlike the other nights Bill spied on her, Mabel was lying gracefully on the mattress, her blanket tucked over her chest, and her arms folding over the covers. She was snoring soundly and softly, compared to her brother who was sleeping beside. Bill peered a bit more so he could spy on Mabel's current dream- and he couldn't believe what he saw.

Mabel was falling in a space of dark black, almost like what she fell through in the bottomless pit. She was just floating, her eyes closed, looking like she wanted to be left alone. Compared to all the other dreams Bill had saw, this was probably the most darkest and most saddest- and was it because it was Bill who visited her today? Bill tried his best to follow the traces of the strange dream, typing in orders, dying to know what was wrong with her, but the log couldn't respond to any of Bill's questions. He swore under his breath.

Bill couldn't stand it. He snapped his fingers so that he had the permission to change her dream around, and decided to add a few things Mabel likes. Pink clouds, pink kittens, the two protagonists from Dream Boy High... but everything Bill threw at her, Mabel was still levitating in the air, depressed and upset. This bothered Bill a lot, even after all the attempts he did to make her happy. All of the things Bill granted for her soon faded away, Mabel not even bothering to know they were there. Bill had no choice but to do something that he didn't in a while- go into Mabel's dream and get some sense into her.

"Ugh, let's just get this over with," Bill moaned, as he adjusted his tail-coat once again and was ready to leap into Mabel's dream.

Bill tapped on Mabel's log twice, and an option asking him to jump into Mabel's dream popped up. Without looking, masking away his major regret, Bill pressed the 'yes' option and a white light appeared and teleported him to Mabel's dreamscape.

He wondered if he was doing something right.

* * *

Mabel floated there thinking, not even feeling weird that she had sudden control and view of her own dream. She didn't feel imaginative and happy like she normally does, she just felt confused. She tightly closed her eyes, wondering if she can shape her environment around her, but it never worked. She wanted to get out the darkness and into the light, but why wasn't she going anywhere? Why wasn't the darkness turning into a land of clouds? She did hear some other things though, such as a kitten purr in the distance and the voices of Xyler and Craz, but she shortly heard them disappear right away after. She only curled tighter to herself.

"Shooting Star?"

Mabel's eyes shot wide open as a familiar voice ringed in her dreamscape. She suddenly collapsed to the pitch-black supposed 'ground', as her head swirled and scanned the area to make sure she wasn't imagining the voice. She turned her head to the side and saw the familiar figure she encountered back in reality- Bill Cipher. He had a neutral face on, but Mabel still had fear in him. Bill was the only thing glowing in the pitch black darkness.

Mabel raised her arms to shield herself, as she curled up into a small ball and closed her eyes, wishing him to disappear. "G-go away," she shivered. "Please, don't hurt me. I won't harm you here as long as you don't harm m-me..."

Bill looked to the side and gently snickered. "Why would I? It seems you already hate the place, so I don't have to make it worse for you."

Mabel felt shocked by Bill's restraint to hurt her, but suddenly felt a bit relaxed by Bill's small laughing, and heard him plop down beside her. Her arms started to fall slowly beside her body, her eyes locked upon the demon who just entered. She felt almost a bit safe around him, and Mabel could always wake up and cancel the dream if she wanted to. Bill was making her nervous but relaxed at the same time, so she might have second thoughts on waking up.

"Now why would you want to wake up now?" Bill asked out of the blue. "I just arrived."

Mabel's head bolted to look at him, not shocked to still know that Bill could still see what she was thinking. She crossed her arms and just stared at the blackness around her. "I..." Mabel started, wondering how she could pleasantly say it, "I don't want you here, Bill. Please."

Bill raised an eyebrow as he turned his head to look at Mabel. "Why is that? I'm at least keeping you company in this far out, pitch-black-"

"Just leave me alone." Mabel harshly interrupted, as she stood up and started to make her way through the dark depths of her mysterious dream. "I know you're going to do something weird, and I don't want you doing it to me or my family."

Mabel angrily marched down the dark depths of her dream, not sure where she was going, but she was certain she was walking away from the dream demon. "Shooting Star, wait," Bill asked, as he got up and started to float towards her. Mabel only walked faster, until her pace started to even turn into a slight jog. Even after Mabel changed her speed, Bill still had the power to catch up with her. Mabel could feel a slight, warm hand hovering over her back after she turned her pace into a jog, and she only decided to go faster. She sprinted and ran, trying her best to get away from Bill- and maybe a slight attempt to wake up from the dream.

"STOP!" Bill suddenly shouted, which made Mabel jump in her run. Her path was then suddenly stopped, as blue fires started to circle around her, preventing any escape. Mabel started to tremble in fear, her dream starting to slowly creep into a nightmare. Her eyes trembled when she saw an angered Bill stride toward her, seeing that Bill was slightly red from frustration. She fell to the ground as Bill levitated closer, and shielded herself from anything he was planning to do.

But then, she suddenly heard him laugh.

Mabel blinked for a second, before she lowered her arm and dared to look at what Bill was laughing at. She noticed the ring of fire around her was gone, and all that was left was a bright and glowing Bill in front of her. He radiated a soft glow that made Mabel feel warm inside, and his laugh almost made it better. But then again, why was he laughing?

"What's going on?" Mabel asked, standing up onto her knees. "Is this a joke?"

"No, it's just..." Bill laughed, as his human arms started to tightened around his sides. He broke down to the floor and continued to laugh. "You run too fast! Even a demon like me can't catch up to you! I know it sounds ridiculous, but... it's true!"

Mabel's eyes started to widen every chuckle Bill gave, as she stared surprised at the demon. She laughed a bit herself as Bill started to calm down. "You... you really think I'm faster than you?" she asked, actually curious.

"No duh, this is probably the most stupidest thing I'm laughing at right now," Bill confessed, his voice starting to get a bit clear. "A mortal is faster than an immortal."

"Am I that fast...?" Mabel started. "I was always the slowest in my gym class back at school... but how would everyone react if I said that I'm faster than a dream demon?"

"Oh, I bet they'll get pretty surprised." Bill said, as he teasingly flicked's Mabel's arm. Both shared tender smiles and chuckled for a bit. Mabel felt a bit relieved that Bill actually didn't mean no harm, especially at the compliment he just gave her, so she decided to feel a bit laid back around him. Mabel started to notice the environment started to get a bit lighter, as she also started to see formations of clouds in the areas above her. She felt a bit happier that she started to have control over the dark depths and her mood seemed to be way better than earlier. But then again, she needed the real reason why Bill was really here.

"I just wanted to see you."

Mabel couldn't help but roll her eyes when she noticed Bill read her mind again.

She stared at Bill blankly, expecting him to go in a bit of depth. Bill couldn't help but look to the side and decided to follow Mabel's little wish in her head. "I dunno, I guess I just feel good about seeing you again." Bill started, as he sat down on the floor. Mabel continued to stare at him as she sat a few centimeters away from him. She blushed a bit red.

"That sounds weird," Mabel confessed, as she took her hands and started to twiddle with her thumbs. "But I guess your company seems fine... as long as you don't do anything stupid in here. Bill, I know you're evil, but maybe... I can give you a chance."

Bill bolted his head to her in surprise, Mabel feeling a tint of happiness glow in his eyes. "I can visit you again if I wanted is what you're trying to say?"

Mabel looked to the side and shrugged, uncertain about her decision. "Sure, as long as Dipper and Grunkle Stan don't know about it."

Bill gasped in happiness. "Of course, of course!" Bill beamed as he floated over to Mabel's side. He took her hands in delight and shook them passionately. "Thanks Mabel. I always feel alone back in my dimension, so probably visiting you won't hurt that much. Thank you, thank you."

This was probably the first time Mabel heard a demon say 'thank you', so she felt a bit tender inside.

Mabel gave a tiny smile, as she yanked her hands back to her own body. The heat that Bill radiated still lingered on her skin, and she softly stroked it with her other hand slowly. "Yeah, yeah." she admitted carelessly. Mabel then felt like the pitch-black darkness lightened up a bit. Was it because it was Bill who was making her happy? She would never know, but she just liked how everything felt a bit more brighter now."

"Anyways, Shooting Star, it's awful of me to cut our evening short, but I have to go now." Bill said out of the blue, standing up from his place on the floor. "I'll talk to you later, friend."

Mabel felt almost a shock of anger go through her. Bill was not a friend at all, and Mabel knew she couldn't redo her mistake. Even though she partially enjoyed his company, Mabel still disliked Bill. "I am not your friend, Bill, I'm more of... an acquaintance." she pointed out. "Y'know, I'm only doing this so you can't bother Dipper or Grunkle Stan's dreams, so you can bother mine." Mabel had a feeling she was telling a half lie.

"Yeah, yeah, okay. I wouldn't even dare though, Shooting Star." Bill confessed. "I mean, have you seen what Pine Tree dreams about? Yeesh!"

Mabel flashed an un-amused face.

Bill couldn't help but snicker. He then started to float more above the air, until Mabel could see the fine details of his shoes. Once he was way above, he tipped the brim of his hat to Mabel and gave a quick wave. "Ta ta, Shooting Star. Remember- reality is an illusion, the universe is a hologram, buy gold, BYE!" Bill said, before he snapped his fingers and teleported back to his own world.

Mabel laughed once Bill escaped, as she started to admire the blue sky and clouds that were slowly starting to form around her. "I still don't know what that means," she sighed.

* * *

Bill felt a bit relieved now that Mabel was having a way better dream than before- she was now skipping on clouds, a family of tiny Waddles following behind her. She was singing all the way, a giant and shiny smile glued to her face the whole entire time. Bill still felt proud of his work, but leaned back and started to levitate around in the air, carelessly tucking his arms behind his head.

"Oh, Shooting Star... not only did I get access to your dreams, but now, I'm just a step closer to ruining your entire life." Bill snickered. But then again...

Why did he feel like he was doing something bad?


	4. Mornings and Errands

**Sorry guys for the long break between this chapter and the previous. Hopefully this chapter and the next one in store will satisfy you. ^_^  
** **Thank you to _Gray Water_ , _Jasper456_ , _gravityfallsfev_ , _StarPines8069_ , and _awesomecatbug_ (Guest) for your reviews! It is deeply appreciated.**

* * *

"Mabel? Mabel, wake up!"

Mabel's eyes opened wide as she heard the excited voice of her brother. Waking up from a joyful dream full of pigs and cute boys, she bolted upwards and saw Dipper standing beside her. He was already prepared for the day, his signature hat perched on his head and his usual (and disgusting) clothes upon him. He had a brown knapsack on his back and was holding the tattered journal in his hands. It seems like he was going somewhere.

Mabel raised a hand to rub her tired eyes and released a loud yawn. "Dipper..." she moaned, still having an urge to return back to sleep. "Don't you know summer is a way for people to catch up on sleep?" She was about to plop back down on her bed and return back to slumber, but Dipper placed a hand on her shoulder to prevent her from collapsing back to the dreamworld.

"C'mon, Mabel, you have been sleeping, for like, HOURS." Dipper said. "It's already 12:00. How late did you stay up last night?"

Mabel felt like replying, but she brushed off her brother's hand and fell back down on her bed. Now that she thought about it, was the dream she had with Bill last night real? Did it even exist? How long was their conversation? She just assumed that the bizarre dream she had with Bill in it was the cause of her over sleeping. Bill was a dream demon after all; one visit from him can change your life forever.

Mabel turned to the side so that she stared at the wall. "I dunno," Mabel carelessly replied, yawning again. "Just go on without me. Have fun by yourself. I'll catch up, or... something."

Dipper folded his arms together, the journal nestled in one hand, and he stared down at his sister. "Get up." he ordered in a somewhat serious tone. Mabel only replied by signalling him to leave her alone.

Dipper rolled his eyes. He literally refused to have an adventure without his sister. He placed the journal aside their bedside table and took his hands and placed them on Mabel's side carefully. His fingers then started to dance and move, the nails scratching lightly on Mabel's blanket, and Mabel felt an urge to giggle. As Dipper continued to do so, Mabel's sudden giggling started to grow into a full on laugh. She flipped to the side so that her face laughed at the ceiling above her. Dipper only continued to tickle his sister's sides.

"No, no, no!" Mabel laughed, trying to protect her sides. "Dangit Dipper, stop!"

Dipper only continued and started to even chuckle himself. "Only if you bother to wake up and face the day!"

Mabel continued to laugh as she started to slap Dipper's hands away. Dipper listened to her as her hands started to curl into fists, punching against his hands. "Okay, okay, fine, just stop already!" Mabel ordered, as she sat up and shoved her brother's hands back to himself. They both continued to laugh and Mabel wiped a developing tear out of her eye.

"You jerk," Mabel laughed as she flipped over the blanket so she could get out of her bed. "Fine, okay. What are we doing today?"

"It turns out Grunkle Stan wants to do another stupid errand for him. It's something about getting more money and stuff like that," Dipper said, backing up to give his sister some space. "We have to go over to the lake and pick up the most shiniest rocks we can find, give them to Stan after so he can paint them to look like golden nuggets and sell them at the gift shop at a high price. He also said we can wander the town for a bit too, as long as we give him the rocks by the end of today. I know it sounds stupid, but he replied that he would make us more useful."

Mabel hopped off her bed and uncurled a few loose strands of her hair. She noticed Waddles retreated his fat body to the corner of the room, and quietly petted him while he was still asleep. "Pft, figures. Let me just get myself something to eat and then I'll get dressed," Mabel said, turning around to face her brother. "Hey, you're still coming to the festival, right?"

Dipper picked up his journal and walked over to Waddles, and softly stroked his back. He took an annoyed glimpse at his sister, still ticked about how she's trying to make him come. "I don't recall attending to it." Dipper replied, un-amused. "And I still don't want to." The both of them walked out of their room and started walking down the hallway, heading to the stairs. Dipper closed the door behind them.

"Aw, c'mon, Dipper, I have a few good candidates you can go with..."

"No."

"Wendy, Candy, Grenda... Pacifica, even..."

"Can you just shut up?"

* * *

The Gravity Falls lake was quiet for once, probably because fishing season passed by so quick. Only a few men were fishing around the docks, about a few others were in the waters, and others were hanging around the fishing shack. Dipper and Mabel knew their way around the town, so it wasn't too hard to walk from the shack to here. But Dipper felt fatigued once he got to the lake. He refused to do any kind of physical activity after what he experienced back at school.

"Get a grip, noddle arms." Mabel teased, noticing her brother collapse to the ground to catch his breath. She started making her way towards the boardwalk, passing a few sitting fishers, and settled on the edge. Mabel took a deep breath, and felt a nice breeze kick in. She enjoyed being with nature, and liked how lakes looked and shimmered under a summer sun.

Dipper shrugged off Mabel's earlier tease and started making his way towards the lake's shores, and started to pick up a few rocks that caught his eye. Mabel stayed on the boardwalk for a bit and chatted with a few fishers sitting by her. She then decided to help her brother after, who, at this point, had dozens of shiny stones and pebbles cradling in his arms. He felt annoyed that Mabel decided to help at last minute, but she didn't even suspect Dipper's annoyance.

For a while, Dipper and Mabel picked up rocks that seemed worthy to be called golden nuggets. Dipper aimed for about medium sized rocks, while Mabel tried her best to find any rocks that seemed to her liking. Dipper seemed he found enough, as his stack started to reach up to his chin while all of it was piled in his arms. He threw his knapsack onto the ground and opened the bag, and dumped all of the rocks in the large pocket. It took half of the bag's capacity, and Dipper took out the journal so he could make room for more. Mabel noticed Dipper dumping all his rocks, and she waddled over and dropped all of the ones she found- small, cute tiny pebbles. Dipper watched in a bit of disgust as each pebble fell into the bag.

Mabel noticed Dipper's gaze. "What? Nuggets can be in any shape and size, right?" Mabel asked, throwing the last rock in and dusting her hands after.

Dipper looked to the side and gave a slight shrug. "Yeah, yeah, that's okay." he replied in a careless tone. Dipper took a look inside the knapsack and saw a satisfying pile of rocks, and he closed the opening shortly. He perched the bag behind his back and picked up the journal, and turned to the current page he was researching. "Well, Mabel, wanna go find a forest ghost with the time we have left?" Dipper asked, showing her a sketch of what seemed to be a pale ghost wandering the forest with other scribbled notes as well.

Mabel raised her hands and shook them, declining his offer. "Nah, I wanna go get some ice cream at the fishing shack. You can go solo today, okay bro-bro?" she replied, also taking a glimpse at the small shack not far away from them.

Dipper looked at the shack, and then at the dark forest looming behind them. He nodded back at his sister a few seconds later. "Yeah, I can. Just stay here, okay?" Dipper asked, placing a careful hand on his sister's shoulder. She nodded, and both went their separate ways- Dipper headed to the forest, and Mabel headed over to the shack while pulling out a dollar bill from her skirt's pocket. She stretched it back and forth, making weird sounds with the note. "Gonna buy some ice cream, gonna buy some ice cream..."

* * *

Mabel had a dripping neapolitan popsicle dripping onto her hands, but she didn't care. Summer, to be honest, was all about sticky ice cream hands.

Mabel was also sitting on the edge of the lake's boardwalk. She removed her flats and socks and placed them beside her, and she dipped her bare feet into the cold waters. It felt soothing to her from all the walking around and looking for rocks. She closed her eyes, took a quick lick of the strawberry part of the popsicle, and listened to the sounds around her. Cheers from fishers who caught fish far from the mainland, laughter from the men near the boardwalk, and the motor sound of faraway cars entering the town not far away. She also heard the singing and crying of birds, the relieving sighs of people hiking around, the humming of cicadas, and a few waves of water crashing softly onto the shoreline of the lake. Mabel admired it all, felt a bit relaxed from getting away from town bustles, and she wished the setting never ended and stayed the same forever.

"Oh, it will!"

Mabel's eyes opened to a start, breaking the peace around her. The voice. It shivered her to the bone.

Mabel launched herself backwards in surprise, feeling a thud and stinging feel on her back. She panicked. The voice- it belonged to Bill. It couldn't be. She started to even panic more when the colorful scenery around her started to spill into a palette of black, white, and grey. Time stopped around her, the voices and all the sounds she heard from reality were cut short and silenced. Everything that moved stayed in one place, a faraway wave stopped in it's tracks, and a fisher from the lake's catch stopped in mid-air, like a picture. Mabel watched everything pause in front of her, and once everything was frozen, she felt something levitating behind her. A radiation of heat was released by the figure, and Mabel easily guessed it was Bill. Though all the sudden scene change, Mabel found it confusing that her ice cream did not fall from her hands or stick onto something else.

"Hello, Shooting Star," Bill greeted playfully. He floated around her so that he was in front, staring at her with his one eye. "I know, this lake is so preetttyy!"


	5. Pretty Lake!

**Thanks to _Gray Water_ , a _Guest_ , _ThePerfectNoble_ , and _Jessica Washington_ for your reviews! All of you guys are awesome.**

* * *

Mabel backed away a small bit, but she had to no choice to flee. Bill had played with her enough times to even make her allow him to hang around her. She looked to the side, and raised her hand to lick her ice cream nervously. Mabel needed to start getting used to these surprise visits and time stops Bill conjured up.

"What do you want?" she asked, and pulled out her tongue to lick the ice cream. She was surprised she could eat things during a time stop.

Bill moved beside Mabel, and looked at her. "Just wanted to see you, like always," he replied in a cheerful tone. He then took a warm glimpse at the lake in front of them. "Oh, wait a second."

He then raised his gloved hand and snapped his fingers, a blue fire ignited on around his hand after the loud snap. The lake then suddenly turned back to it's original color scheme, blue and glistening, but everything around them still remained black and white. Mabel even noticed the waves were forming, but disappeared so suddenly when they reached the shoreline. She looked at Bill Cipher, expecting an answer from him from the sudden change.

Bill only returned a nervous look, something that surprised Mabel. "It seems you liked the colorful lake, but not the bland black and white one I always look at, so... I decided to change it." he replied, and started to even play with his fingers. "I hope you're okay with that."

Mabel took a few seconds to develop what Bill said, and waved her hands around. "No, no, of course, thank you." Mabel said, scooting a bit closer to him. She was starting to see that maybe Bill might've not been a threat at all. Especially since he did nice gestures to her before, and how friendly he's grown to her. They both continued to look at the lake together, peacefully, and Mabel was starting to freak out when the rest of the atmosphere around them remained the same, and Bill didn't even bother to change it. She had a strong urge to return back to reality, but another part of herself told her to relax and stay with the time stop with Bill.

"It's dangerous, okay?" Bill suddenly said out of no where. "Your brother will get really angry seeing me hanging out with you if I return time back to normal."

Mabel took another nervous lick of her ice cream, annoyed that Bill read her mind again. "You have to stop doing that," Mabel replied. "Reading people's minds is really disrespectful. You could say you have a habit, Bill."

Bill turned his head to look at Mabel, surprised about what Mabel just said. "What? Me, having a habit? Pft." Bill denied, as he leaned back a bit and crossed his arms. "To be honest, too many people have too many habits. I don't understand how human beings live nowadays. If there's anyone with a habit, it's the entire human race."

"I don't know how demons live," Mabel came back, looking at Bill. "By the way, why haven't you changed back to your triangle pyramid flying form if you think my kind is disgusting? Wait, now that I think about it..."

Bill stared down at Mabel, expecting her to finish her sentence. But it seems she was lost in her own thoughts for a few seconds. It made Bill impatient.

"Oh, so you rather would have me like this?" Bill quickly came in, interrupting Mabel's thoughts. He snapped his fingers and a ring of blue fire engulfed him, and he returned back to his normal demon form. It slightly made Mabel uncomfortable, since she was used to Bill's human body. Now that she thought about it, was it even a real body?

"Yes, yes, it was my old body before when I was a human." Bill said, as he summoned another flame to change his form again. "17 year old Bill, just walking around."

"Wait, 17 years old?" Mabel echoed, actually starting to get curious. "Human? Wait, this is going too far even for my understanding..."

Bill rolled his eyes, and clutched his hands onto the bridge. "Look, long story short, I used to be a human, okay? Had a family, nice life, until, I guess, everything turned around and I became the monster everyone hates. There, that answers your question, right?"

Mabel just stared at Bill with awe. The demon curled up into a small ball and was lost in his own thoughts, and Mabel guessed he was just remembering his old life. Mabel started to even reconsider Bill now that she knew that he used to be a human like herself. She raised her hand and licked her ice cream, feeling that the ice cream just tasted a bit bland without Bill being cheery like he always was.

"So.. that was your body before?" Mabel asked out of no where, taking a small glimpse at Bill's human form. "Meaning... you were 17 when you..."

"Yeah, technically speaking. When I supposedly died. Good guess." Bill replied, sounding a bit annoyed now. "Please don't tell anyone, okay?"

Mabel looked at Bill and saw that he uncurled from his ball and was relaxing beside her. Mabel clutched onto the stick of her ice cream, and looked at the lake in front of them, forgetting that it was even there because of this serious conversation. "Of course. Our meetups are totally private." Mabel confessed. She finished licking the strawberry section and was starting to make her way to the vanilla.

Bill gave a small laugh. "So you're REALLY okay with me hanging out with you?"

Mabel closed her eyes. "No, it's just to protect Stan and my brother. Bother me, not them. Remember that, Bill-"

"Dangit, it is a habit!" Bill shouted out suddenly, interrupting Mabel's sentence. She bolted her head to look at him. He flashed a smirk. "You're lying, Shooting Star!"

Mabel's face then suddenly flashed beet red, and she started to finish her ice cream, pretending not to be nervous. _Dangit, Bill, I hate it how you have to read everyone's mind._ Mabel shouted in her head.

Bill then got off his seat beside Mabel and floated and levitated, laughing, and looked at Mabel. He reached over and looked at her, face to face. "I'm glad that you understand me, Shooting Star." Bill said, as he slowly held her cheek. Bill's hand felt warm against Mabel's skin, and the red that developed in Mabel's cheeks only glowed brighter. "I have to go, but I'll talk to you later, okay, friend?"

Mabel gave a tiny smile, but looked to the side stubbornly. "Just go." she replied harshly.

Bill smiled and removed his hand off her cheek and decided to hold her hand. "You're adorable." he playfully teased, then reached in and pecked Mabel's nose, which only made her more flustered and grow red.

He backed away quickly and snapped his fingers, as a blue fire started to ignite around them and around Mabel. Everywhere Mabel looked, color started to fade in and a few bystanders were starting to move, but a white flash was developing around her. Before everything faded into white, Mabel saw Bill look at her, giving her a cute wink. And after that, white flashed in Mabel's eyes, burning her.

She then opened her eyes again a few quiet seconds later to see she was back in reality, there were sounds and people moving, and saw that she still needed to finish her ice cream- the chocolate part now left to be licked.

Mabel looked at the ice cream. A smile developed on her mouth. She pulled out her tongue and licked the last bit of her popsicle, and looked towards the horizon of the lake. She honestly didn't know why she was smiling, but for some reason, to her- it felt good.

* * *

Bill stared at a happy Mabel, who just recently finished her ice cream and walked over to a garbage can to throw away the stick. She quickly retrieved and slipped on her socks and slippers and made her way to the forest, calling her brother's name. Bill smiled, as he turned around and decided to stop watching Mabel for now. "Close Shooting Star tab, please." he ordered, his voice echoing the empty atmosphere. The log obeyed, and soon, Mabel's voice was a mere fragment. Bill, after a few seconds later of pure silence, conjured up a lounge chair, sat on it, and thought for a second. He raised and stared at his left gloved hand, and soon, removed the black fabric that dressed around it. Bill then stared at his human flesh- and felt a shiver when the first thing that he saw was nothing but the leftover scar from that day- a dark red cut of a triangle. He couldn't handle it, and slipped his glove back on after mere seconds. Memories from that haunting day flashed in his mind, and he asked himself to stop. Bill clutched onto his hair as he tempted himself to stop thinking about the horrible things that happened in the past.

"It's okay Bill, everything will be fine." Bill told himself in reassurance. "You're fine, you're in a better place, you're doing better things than before. Never doubt the decision you ever made of becoming immortal. It was the perfect decision you have ever made."

Bill laughed a bit, before he released the strands of his hair and covered his stale mouth and throat, having an urge to cry. Images from that day couldn't- and wouldn't- get out of his head for eternity.


	6. Save Me

**(If you are a reader of the future, please ignore all of this and proceed on with the fanfic)**

 **Hello everyone, it is I, TheSakuraHunter.**  
 **NOW BEFORE anyone starts freaking out about how _long_ it's been since this fanfiction last updated, please hear a bit from my part.**  
 **I couldn't update in a long while since I was so busy with school and other things in life (yes, I know the usual excuses for most writers, and unfortunately I am also one of the bunch), so I'm sorry that I had to push this story away to accomplish what I needed to do. I promise that this fanfiction will be completed soon, and with a good ending (well, hopefully).**

 **Since I do this with the rest of my stories, at the end of each chapter from now on I'll do something called 'Review Time'! I just respond to people's reviews or questions for this fanfiction, so if you posted a review, keep an eye out for my words on it!**

 **Anyways, enough about me. Let's proceed with the MaBill!**

* * *

 _The cottage was cold. The window still needed glass panels, the fire wasn't strong enough in the stone oven, and Teddy's snoring hasn't gotten better. I turned around in my sleep, clutching to my blanket in the silence and shivering under the chilly temperature, having no urge to slumber. I just couldn't help myself. My mind was racing with thoughts and excitement of tomorrow, that I have stood up long enough to see a small shade of orange settle beyond the horizon outside in the fields. I sat up, still calming down my nerves and breathing to a silence to prevent mom, dad or Teddy to stir and wake up. I then turned my head over and reached under my cushion to the hidden paper that declared my case of anticipation and happiness. Finely printed words read out 'The Festival of Lanterns', and under it, a charming headline that said 'A Day To Finally Change Your Light'._

 _A day where I can finally make up for all the mistakes I have ever done._

 _I smiled, realizing that the festival was on the approach as quick as I thought. I returned the poster back underneath my pillow and tried my best to gather as much energy as I can for the big day. I needed it. I wanted to be a new person so badly._

* * *

The forest had a cool air around it and the sky still glistened a bright blue. Mabel walked down the rough, bark buried grounds of the Gravity Falls forest and stared at the tall pine trees that reached to the heavens and the looming swallows that flied by. She had just recently finished hanging out at the lake (and had a few minutes to herself to gather up what just happened at the lake with Bill), and was currently on a search for her twin who said he would be searching for forest ghosts in the woods. She repeatedly called her brother's name, hoping to find him. She rested her neck a bit from staring at the trees and focused her vision on the main path of the forest. Her voice was getting somewhat coarse.

"Dipper? Dipppeeerrr," Mabel called, almost chanting like her twin was a lost dog. "Where are you, little Dipper?"

The young brunette walked down the clear line of the forest path and repeated the name calling process over and over, but the trees around her started to surround her more, Mabel realizing that she may be sidetracking on the wrong path. She still proceeded to find her brother, having her grappling hook hanging under her sweater just in case if any monsters tried to attack her.

"Dipper? I'm done hanging at the lake," Mabel said, trying to be more specific with her speech and attempting to not mention that Bill was with her. "Let's go home now, I'm getting tired."

Mabel continued going down the path, finding herself face to face with the tall pine trees that used to be so far from her. She was going off the main path, but she didn't care. Maybe taking a shortcut would help her find Dipper faster. She was now walking around the trees in circles and starting to get a bit dizzy, her voice now getting sore from calling her brother. Mabel also noticed that a slight fog was starting to settle within the forest, and her overall vision was starting to loosen. She peered her eyes through the blurriness, trying to see if she could catch a glimpse of her brother's silhouette anywhere. She must be getting very far from the entrance of the forest if she managed to hit fog so soon.

"Dipper?" Mabel said once again, her voice become a vague echo. "The forest isn't that big, I'm sure I can find you..."

Mabel started to get worried. She stood where she originally placed, an area that had trees circling around her everywhere and an empty space in the middle of all it. It was frightening and a bit odd on how she got herself into an odd place like this, and the fog's state started to get stronger by the second. Mabel didn't notice much fog in forests like these, so Mabel also thought the fog's thickness was weird too. She held slightly onto herself. This little trip was starting to get a bit weird and spooky.

"Bro bro...?" the young brunette called for almost the hundredth time. "C'mon, stop kidding around. Just show yourself already and let's head back to the shack. Stan must be worried about us, so let's get a move on-"

Suddenly, the female Pines heard a ghastly moan interrupt her nervous words. It echoed the entire forest like a seashell, vague and eerie.

Mabel's whole entire body shook.

Her head started swirling around, trying to find the source of the odd voice. The fog only made it worse, now that Mabel only found herself shrouded in a white thickness. The person- or maybe, even _thing_ \- could easily jump upon her and could instantly rip her up to bloody shreds, so she slowly pulled out her grappling hook that's been hiding in her sweater the whole entire time. She held her shaking finger over the trigger, and took shallow breaths.

"Who's there?" Mabel asked, her voice confident but a little shaky. A moment of silence, then Mabel heard a loud swift sound, like almost something raced across the trees.

Her response was the ghastly voice again, but even louder this time.

Mabel's throat went dry, her heart was beating rapidly, and her legs were shaking by the cold and the fear that started to swell inside of her. Her body spun in a circle slowly, as she aimed her grappling hook in no specific direction, wondering if the 'thing' would come out and unveil itself.

"Please... I'm not afraid..." Mabel quivered, closing her eyes and hoping this was another joke made by Bill, hoping she would punch him immediately if it was. The fog got stronger, and Mabel almost thought she wasn't in the forest anymore. She seriously thought this was a huge prank, and Mabel pleaded the climatic quietness to end.

But it didn't.

Mabel's wish was granted after a few quiet seconds and the moaning was soon at it's loudest point. She realized that the creature was right in front of her or behind her, since she couldn't detect a certain presence. She felt a ghostly sense floating around her body, and Mabel stayed on tact. The Pines held her confidence and determination inside her, acting as tough and courageous with everything she could muster. The creature that has been scaring her the entire time finally appeared before her, with a pair of glowing blood red eyes and an intimidating body shape. Mabel recognized the monster's figure soon after taking it in, seeing the monster numerous times in Journal 3.

"A forest ghost," Mabel said clearly, surprising herself by her tone of voice.

The ghost scowled and raised it's white arms towards the young girl, a sign that it was planning to attack her. Mabel aimed her grappling hook towards the ghost, and shot it as quick as she could. Her heart jumped. To no surprise, the hook went through the ghost's transparent body and landed straight into the ground, and Mabel's eyes shrunk and her body crippled. She returned her hook back to it's original position and decided to not use it, realizing that it was useless now. She returned her weapon back into her sweater and stared at the ghost with pleading eyes, asking it to leave her alone. Her skin went numb and cold, and the ghost continued to scowl at her until it began to growl and hiss.

"Please, no..." Mabel croaked, as she turned around slightly to try and flee. The ghost's paralyzing gaze made Mabel stay where she was, and the brunette found herself to lose all motion within her. She instantly collapsed to the ground and her entire system shivered. A small tear that watered her eyes fell slowly and silently down her cheek, and she still held her nervous gaze towards the creature. In her mind, she was pleading to the ghost to give her mercy, but the ghost did not listen.

 _Help_. Mabel's lips mouthed silently.

Mabel sniffled a bit. "Dipper... Grunkle Stan... anyone..." she quivered. She tightly closed her eyes, and held her hands into fists, hoping this really was just a dream. The forest ghost's moan started to grow into a demonic laugh, and it's claws conjured up a multi-glowing ball of energy that was about to be unleashed towards her. Mabel sat still, and she only closed her eyes tighter.

 _Bill_...

"SHOOTING STAR!"

A loud and urgent voice ringed in Mabel's head. The brunette's head sprung up and her flooding tears halted to a stop. The monster's claws were slightly open and the energy ball it released was a few centimeters away from Mabel's frail body, but the girl found herself in another time stop. The looming fog around her also stood still, and Mabel saw the dark forest trees in an eerie black and white shade.

She also noticed the glowing humanoid body that stood in front of her, protecting her from the blast.

Mabel took note of the tail coat, and the pyramid detail on it, the black formal pants, and the leather shoes, and the iconic top hat.

"Bill..." Mabel sighed, her mouth slowly growing to a smile. Was she _actually_ smiling because Bill was here?

Time resumed right after Mabel caught up with the surroundings, and Bill easily stopped the energy ball's path. The beam easily bounced off of him and shattered to the ground, almost like glass. The ball's pieces faded away instantly, and the forest spirit looked at Bill nervously. Bill clenched his hands into fists and a fiery blue blaze ignited from them.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't someone who always fails at their job," Bill mocked sarcastically, lowering his tense shoulders. "What'd ya think you're doing to my Shooting Star?"

The forest spirit backed away a bit, but Bill only moved closer. The ghost now had a whimpering voice. Bill smiled deviously. Mabel was genuinely glad Bill was here, but she was wondering what was going on.

The dream demon held up his right hand and snapped with his blue fire ignited hand, and a circle of blue fireballs swirled around the forest ghost. The ghost looked around itself and it's former ghostly eyes changed to a pleading one, similar to the ones Mabel made a while ago. The ghost then returned it's gaze to Bill, and Mabel traced a pleading tone in the ghost.

"Please no, please no..." Mabel heard the ghost whimper like a tortured child. "I promise, I promise, I promise, to never, to never, to never, do it, do it, again..."

The ghost sounded like a broken mixtape, Mabel concluded in her head. She didn't want this, all of a sudden. Even though the ghost tried to kill her, Mabel didn't want to kill it. She felt the need to spare it's misunderstood life.

She suddenly walked up to Bill, who was only making the circle of blue fire around the ghost move around faster, and she placed her calm hand upon his right. She flinched, feeling a light burn on her hands, but looked up to her 'friend'. Bill stopped for a mere second and stared down at the 13 year old with a confused and angered face.

She looked up to him with a glare. "Stop." she started. "Stop all of this right now."

The demon froze. _Are you kidding me?_ he laughed in his head.

There was _no way_ that a mere mortal, especially his _toy,_ would tell him what to do.

Bill smirked as his response. "Shooting Star, you don't get my point." Bill explained. "It's only fair to eliminate those who harm you. Just consider this me doing a favor for _you_." Only to make matters worse, Bill clutched his ignited hand and the circle of fire around the tree spirit only grew into bigger flames, up to the size of the ghost itself. Mabel still held tightly onto Bill's hand, trying to control it and how unstable it seemed. But to break Mabel's heart, the girl heard a fainted, defeated screech echoing from the spirit. Mabel's heart sank heavily just seeing it suffer.

However, in the midst of all the tension, Mabel only continued to stare at Bill until he had the idea of changing his mind. The brunette admitted that it was frightening to look at Bill's awakened eyes, seeing them as an evil red and a deathly black. She thought this was the only way to persuade him, without physically touching him- or in this case, without being physically hurt.

"Bill, please." Mabel said, only hanging tighter onto his hand. "This is something... this is not..."

"This is NOT how you act, Bill!" Mabel shouted. What seemed like tears flashed off of Mabel's eyes. She grabbed onto Bill's arm and fully took it for herself, trying to calm down the angry, enraged demon. His arm felt piping hot, but she held it close to her chest. "Please..."

In the heat of the moment, Bill stopped. His right hand softened, the ring of fire faded before finally burning it's victim, and his eyes returned to their glowing golden color.

 _What... what did Shooting Star say...?_ Bill asked in his mind. _That I'm not acting like I should be?_

After a few quiet seconds, with no one in the area making any sound, the demon silently snapped his left hand and a quick time stop appeared, the atmosphere being monochromatic and empty. Mabel only removed Bill's arm from her embrace and looked around, trying her best to get her vision back from her watery eyes.

Bill was glowing yellow again just the like the other time stops, but his face was looking guilty towards the ground. His eyes quivered, his hands shook and the demon seemed to be... frightened. Mabel peeked under him and tried to look at his face, seeing if he was eligible to negotiate with her.

"Bill..." she started, and reached a steady hand on his shoulder for further reassurance. As soon as she entered his perimeters, Bill took her wrist and pulled her away, making Mabel tremble to the ground. He still gripped onto her hand, and held it like it was the only thing left in the universe.

"I am doing what I need to, Shooting Star..." Bill begun. "You don't understand... you don't understand anything at all."

Mabel didn't compute. She tried her best to remove Bill's grip on her, and she slowly stood up to try to comfort him in his dazed state. Whatever is the reason, it doesn't matter. Mabel just needed to cheer him up. "But Bill-"

"I'M SORRY! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Bill shouted, as he faced up towards the sky and pushing off Mabel from his parameters. He lowered his hands to the ground and chanted an unknown language, and a glowing symbol started to facade in. Mabel watched in a latter of seconds as a bright, yellow circle emitted around him, and in a flash, the time stop ended and he was gone. Before he truly left, Mabel reached out her hand to him and shouted his name, but her trembling voice was nothing more than a mere echo in the deluded time stop.

Mabel awoken to a start, finding herself in the middle of the forest where she was encountered by the evil spirit in what seemed like hours ago. Mabel also noticed that the ghost was no where to be seen. She wanted it to be safe, but knowing the bright and blinding flash Bill just conjured up, she might also be aware that it ceases to be. The brunette sat up and held her forehead, feeling a throbbing pain inside. She tried to focus and maintain her vision, but everything felt blurry and sickening.

"Mabel? MABEL! Are you there?"

In the forest, Mabel heard a faint voice coming from the trees. But she released her guard. _Dipper._

From one of the corners, Dipper appeared out of a rustling bush, looking a bit dirtier and roughed up than earlier. His worry soon faded away as he saw his twin alive and breathing, but also in the same state as him. "Mabel!" Dipper exclaimed, running over to her urgently. "I heard you earlier, but a few seconds after, you didn't reply to my call. I needed to make sure you were okay." He then glanced at his sister's skin, which was dirty, bruised, and had a faint of blood brushed against it.

The boy flinched for a second. "What happened?" Dipper then asked, holding his sister's hand and inspecting her wounds carefully. "You were perfectly fine this morning. You didn't get attacked or anything, right?"

Mabel glanced at her twin, being confused from how much he was talking. She was still listening, but not intensively. Everything in her mind was just running on and on about Bill, and what just happened. _You don't understand,_ was what she last picked up from his lips. Understand? Understand what? Well, whatever it was, Mabel had sheer determination to help him out with anything. But now that she was thinking about it- did she really just say that? That she was going to help an enemy? Curious but insane thoughts were flooding the girl's mind, but she was snapped out when Dipper shook her limp body to wake her up.

"Mabel! Answer me, please!" Dipper asked.

Mabel was still, and her faint eyes looked over to her brother's. She muttered the words she wanted to say at the beginning, and now, she was able to say it.

"Let's go home now."

* * *

 **Review Time!**

 _ **Miss Cipher  
**_ **I'm glad you're enjoying the story, and thank you so much! *hug***

 _ **CurrentlyFalling  
**_ **Thank you so much! I wanted to open up a more open Mabel character for the arc, and I'm glad you're enjoying everything! I know progress has been pretty lacking for this fanfiction, but it'll get back up and running! Hope you continue reading!**

 _ **Maisie (Guest)  
**_ **Poor Bill, he'll get used to these feelings sooner or later. :')c**

 _ **Nanalovingnana (Guest)  
**_ **Don't worry, we'll get a backstory veeeeeeerrrryyy soon... Glad you're enjoying the story!**

 _ **Saphirabrightscale  
**_ **Thank you so much! The chapter updates may lack from time to time, but the story will be completed soon!**

 _ **starrgazzer19  
**_ **I HAVE ANSWERED YOUR CALLING. I HAVE CONTINUED THE FANFIC. :'D Don't be sad, the story's technically just beginning! I hope you look forward to the future chapters.**

 **More chapters are on the way! Again, I thank you all for your wonderful patience! I am eternally grateful for all of you readers.**

 **Stay awesome!  
-TSH**


	7. Something That I Want

**Hello fellow readers and welcome to chapter 7! (wow such special welcome, hehehe)**  
 **I am very sorry that updates haven't been frequent, but we are getting to the end pretty soon!**  
 **The second Review Time will be at the end of this chapter.**

* * *

 _I didn't really care if it smelled like animal waste or smoke in the carriage, or even if Teddy was clinging to my sleeves tightly and nervously beside me. Mom and dad seemed as anxious as me as they were both at the front of the carriage steering the horses, and I was already as anxious as it was at the back. The last view of the farm disappeared into sight as we entered a forest of bountiful emerald trees, and in a matter of time, we would enter the bustling town of Cadea. I knew Teddy had a nasty anxiety of being around a crowd of people, but I had to tell him to muster all the effort he could for today._

 _"That's gonna be hard, brother." Teddy quivered as we both went out to the barn to feed the cattle earlier this morning. "Can't I just stay here at home?"_

 _I groaned a sigh of exasperation and held my head with a stressed hand. "You're such a baby sometimes, Teddy." I remembered provoking him as we settled a stack of hay to our famished cows. "You promised that you would come with all of us. It's too late to go out now."_

 _My younger brother Teddy was the youngest at fifteen. I was the oldest one, despite having so many childish habits._

 _And as such goes, the youngest was always supposed to follow the oldest, no matter what, and barely the other way around._

 _It was just the way and belief of Cadea._

 _We finished feeding our last cow and we both dusted our splintered and dirt cloaked hands from the labor. "Fine." Teddy moaned, as we both made our way out of the barn. "But only if you promise that tomorrow we will visit the Silver Stream first thing in the morning."_

 _The 'beautiful' and 'luscious' Silver Stream._

 _The long and painful walk to the bellowing water stream outside of our farm, where it was the only place Teddy felt at peace._

 _And first thing in the morning? For a second, I thought it wasn't worth it._

 _But if it was for Teddy coming to The Festival of Lanterns with our family and I, I might as well had to do it._

 _Taking out my hand to seal the deal, Teddy gladly shook my hand like it was the last thing on earth and it became official._

 _Remembering all of it didn't seem to matter to me at the moment, nor did the painful walk I would have to endure tomorrow. I didn't care if my feet would end up becoming a bloody and bruised mess in the morning for some measly body of water that Teddy liked staring at so much. All that mattered was The Festival of Lanterns, and how everything was going to change from this day forth._

 _Despite him being anxious about it, I thought I saw Teddy crack a smile as mom and dad said we were closer to Cadea._

 _And before I knew it, I saw the clay buildings, the blue tiled roofs, and the strings of lanterns all over the marketplace and houses beyond the cobblestone bridge that separated the urban from the rural._

 _The Festival of Lanterns was finally here._

* * *

"Hey Paz, have you ever rejected a guy before?"

Mabel sat patiently and quietly as her Northwest friend continued to braid her hair into a smooth and fine pattern, curling hair pieces over and over like she was weaving a fine straw basket. Pacifica titled her head a bit so she could look at Mabel, a bit shocked from her somewhat serious question. She returned her gaze at the brown locks of her friend and thought hard, trying her best to find a suitable and appropriate answer.

"Well, I'm a Northwest, what do you expect?" she joked sarcastically a few seconds later. "I have rejected so many guys in the past that I have lost count. It was mostly because my parents forced me to reject the guy, but I never really liked anyone before in that way. Why are you asking? Is it serious, or anything?"

Mabel took the sleeves of her sweater and stroked her hand over the soft fabric, and shook her head softly so that Pacifica could resume braiding her hair.

"Not really, no." Mabel replied. "I just get those weird thoughts on if a guy really did like me so much to the point where I would want to reject them, sort of like, _obsession_ , it just... freaks me out. You being the more popular person compared to me, I thought you would have some advice to give."

Pacifica's hands got to the end of the braid strand, and the blonde pulled out a vibrant neon pink hair tie wrapped around her wrist to wrap it all up together. Her azure eyes gazed down sadly at Mabel, guilt welling up inside her seeing that she wasn't able to help her friend. Pacifica finished the braid and removed her hands off of Mabel's hair, leaving her to judge the braid herself.

"I'm sorry if my answer wasn't good enough," Pacifica pardoned, laughing. She placed her hands together and carefully grabbed her own braid that Mabel made for her minutes ago, perching it on her shoulder. "If you don't mind me asking another question, how's the date meter going for The Festival of Lanterns? Dipper told me you were trying to find a special guy for the event."

Mabel blinked. The girl reached over to grab her own braid and feel how it was, but she couldn't feel anything. She was lost at words on how process really was going for finding a date for the festival, since Bill has just been flooding her thoughts, especially from what happened in earlier. She remembered that the celebration was the day after tomorrow, and she only had a couple of hours to find a final date. She didn't know much young available bachelors in the town, and had attempted to flirt with the average male tourist, but she failed every time. She decided to take the rest of the afternoon as a break for her searches, and decided to call up Pacifica to hang out and sleep over, since the brunette had an urge for socializing with her female friends. Mabel thought taking a break from the Festival of Lanterns and maybe even Bill would help clear up her mind, but it came to no avail. The brunette sighed contently.

"It's doing great," Mabel lied, twiddling her thumbs nervously. "Got some good candidates on the line."

Pacifica looked at her Pines friend, and rubbed her shoulder reassuringly with a hint of pride. "Can't wait to meet the lucky guy." she said.

The Northwest stood up and fixed her long purple blouse, and walked out of the living room and started to head into the kitchen. "Seems like dinner is done," Pacifica reported, staring into the kitchen with curious eyes. "Let's go before the food gets cold."

Mabel stood up slowly, still holding her hands in a reassuring and gentle manner, and walked over to Pacifica with quiet steps.

"Okay." she replied in a deadpan voice.

* * *

Chaos.

Fire.

A sky colored with the shade of blood.

The main timeline looked so bittersweet, Bill thought. He saw his glowing, triangle demon-self ruling over Gravity Falls a previous year before, a large bubble surrounding the small Oregon town in no means of escape. The civilians were running wild in the streets, shrieking in terror, as flying eyeballs with bat wings froze them into stone, proceeding to carry them over to Bill's nightmare castle in the apocalyptic sky.

It all looked like what Bill always wanted. People suffering, under his foot.

But he felt different from all of it.

The worst part he saw in everything was the giant bubble in the middle of town- a crimson and magenta colored sphere, a chambered and tight lock wrapped around all of it, and a bright shooting star symbol engraved upon it's body. It was basically Mabel's prison in that particular universe, and Bill couldn't comprehend it.

His target was easily imprisoned in the most complicated of all traps, and in such a short span of time.

The demon couldn't handle looking at it anymore. He turned off his universe monitor and returned himself back to his own dimension, where things were peaceful and calm in contrast to what he just witnessed.

Bill didn't know the exact reason why he wanted to take a look at his more successful self in another timeline. He still felt shuddering from his earlier encounter with the Forest Ghost, and Mabel's chilling and confusing words. He maybe thought that looking at himself in another reality would cheer him up, but it made him more wretched about the world and his mission of being a dream demon. But it was now his duty (more like 'daily activity', he acknowledged) to spy on his pawn, no matter if it bugged him or not.

Bill flicked on the monitor, and saw his favorite town loomed over with a night sky and gleaming stars. The town was fast asleep, at least every civilian was resting for the next day. Bill turned over to the Mystery Shack and decided to spy on Mabel, refraining to even take a peek at the rest of the Pines family. The girl was fast asleep, looking a bit better than the nights before. She was breathing softly, and her brother on the opposite side of her and even the Northwest sleeping on the floor in a comfy sleeping bag between them also looked like they were at peace.

The demon's face softened, and for sure felt satisfying. He expanded the log so that he could primarily focus on his Shooting Star, admiring how cute and beautiful she looked when she slept soundly.

He stared at her in astounding awe. The way her brown hair was silky and tangled with loose strands, her gentle hands placed over her chest like a graceful maiden from a tragic fairy tale, and her delicate face that was in solemn tranquility and slumber...

Bill didn't even know he was slowly blushing a bright shade of pink from just gazing at her.

"Adorable." Bill said unconsciously, even surprising himself.

Even looking at Mabel made him confused. His mere pawn, making him rebuke all of these new feelings he had never knew he could feel. Bill only meant to play with her and see what kind of reactions she would conjure of it, like a child getting a new toy and almost ruining it as soon as they were able to get their hands on it; but Bill felt something entirely new as the days went by, just teasing and hanging out with Mabel. Almost as if he was left alone for darkness for so long, and Mabel was the growing and glowing candle in the night.

Bill felt acceptance into something he didn't know of.

The strong blush in his face died, and his cheekbones remained still and frozen. His lips formed into a tight straight line and his eyes glued heavily on the screen. Staring at Mabel one last time in admiration, Bill closed the tab and waited for the entire system to shut down, so he could have one last quiet time to himself.

He was going to do it.

Just like the night before, Bill was surrounded by blank emptiness. He snapped a bright, blue fire in his hand to provide some warmth and light, and he stood up strongly in the monochrome.

"Closet room." Bill announced blankly, his voice ricocheting the entire universe.

In a matter of seconds, a compressed room started to build around the dream demon, all of the colors still being in shades of white, black and grey. Four walls closed around Bill and a polished wooden floor was built under him to provide him somewhere to stand. To the side of him, a large walk-in closet appeared, with circular knobs and wooden blinds; housing his numerous costumes, clothing, and skins he pulled off in his entire lifetime. Above the closet housed a clock that functioned in reverse in the shape of an eye.

And finally, in front of him, a large rectangular mirror showed up, reflecting his tall and slender figure in a crystal-clear view.

A light popped up on the ceiling of the closet room, but there was no source of energy to be functioned with. To provide better lighting, Bill reached up and placed the blue fire in his hands inside the light's body, and the entire room lit up a bit better than before.

When he was ready, Bill took a good look at his human form and smiled, clearing his throat and putting his hands together.

"My, my, Mabel. I must ask you something."

"Mind going to The Festival of Lanterns with me?"

* * *

Mabel woke up to a start, and then realized she woke up earlier than she thought she would've expected. Morning light spilled into the room, and a warm sticky air surrounded her body. Dipper and Pacifica were still sound asleep beside her, eyes tightly shut and bodies breathing soundly in coordination with their heartbeat. To the corner of the room, pudgy Waddles was also deep in slumber, leaning on one side of his fat pig body and quietly snorting to himself. Mabel smirked, and jumped out of her bed in silence and refrained from waking up the three.

Visions of her dream from last night lingered in her mind. It was a good thing that the dream was a wonderful fantasy, and not a horrendous nightmare she experienced the night before. Pink cotton candy forests, candy cane roads and fudge waterfalls, and not to mention, a crowd of boys as far as the eye could see; it was everything that soothed Mabel to the core. Just thinking about it made Mabel grin and her cheeks blush.

As the cheerful brunette made her way down the hall, she became aware that the entire house was still asleep. She didn't smell any pancakes or burnt eggs wafting from the kitchen, or the odd smell of 'monster blood' or sulfur emitting from Ford's lab downstairs. She was the first one to wake up, and this was most likely the day she will ever do so.

Mabel entered the washroom first and took a long and hefty bath to start her day. She mixed in her favorite strawberry-scented bubble bath and soaked in it as the water became lukewarm. She threw around pink bubbles in the air and dove herself in the bath face first, resulting in _dashing_ bubble-staches and unnecessary accents. Mabel took her time to clean herself with conditioner and soap as the bubbles started to disappear and pop away, and she exited out of the bathroom refreshed and awake, clothed in a new buttercup-yellow sweater and leggings.

To her surprise, no one didn't even wake up as she took her long bath.

 _Looks like I'm the one to make breakfast for everyone_.

Not that Mabel didn't like it, but she didn't feel like doing anything at all for the day.

Mabel walked down the stairs and entered the refrigerator-humming kitchen with wet hair and fragrant skin. She first filtered the coffee machine and inserted new coffee grounds, and waited for the mechanism to do it's magic. In the meantime, Mabel prepared a simple pancake batter and turned on the stove, cooking and flipping pancakes as the minutes went by.

 _Anytime now_ , Mabel muttered patiently in her mind, finishing another pancake and flipping it on a plate. _Someone's gonna walk in here and say good morning._

But fate had other cruel plans for her. Almost an entire hour had passed from Mabel's wake, and the young girl didn't even hear a stir.

 _Guess I have to eat breakfast alone then._ She concluded in her mind, finishing at least the tenth pancake.

Mabel pulled out a container of her chilled and delicious Mabel juice she made beforehand from the fridge and grabbed one cooked flapjack, smothering all of it in golden and sugary maple syrup as she settled down. She then proceeded to have an absolute silent and boring breakfast, something she had experienced once or twice in her life with _excellent gusto_. The sun shone brighter as the quiet minutes went by, and still, no one entered the kitchen, and Mabel didn't hear the bathroom exhaust go. She wasn't sure what to make of all this loneliness.

She managed to finish her breakfast, but didn't feel completely satisfied and full when she was done. The girl washed her dishes contently and left them to dry, now unsure of what to do for the rest of the morning. Without having a thorough plan in mind, she thought she would go out when at least one family member was awake so the house was guarded and alive. Shrugging, she decided for the time being to hang outside and breathe in some morning summer air, and for at least one person in the house to wake up and provide some company and some noise for her.

When Mabel opened the main door to the outside, she was met with a gentle breeze and fresh forest air, smelling remnants of burned firewood and fresh lumber from campers and lumberjacks not far away from the shack. The sky was a bright pastel blue, and a few clouds settled up high and drifted as the morning went by. Keeping her head up to hazily stare at the clouds, Mabel walked more outside and took a seat on the shack's porch steps, the sun now touching her skin and face.

The young brunette closed her eyes and took a deep whiff with her nose, and held her breath for a few seconds, comprehending the freshness. Feeling at peace, she breathed out and opened her eyes, hoping to see the bright sun and sky once more.

But suddenly, there was no color.

Once Mabel opened her eyes and comprehended her environment, everything was black and white, like it always was whenever a _time stop_ occurred. She wasn't unsure what to feel at the exact moment, but Mabel was not surprised and definitely not amused on what was about to unfold.

She blinked bluntly and kept a blank face when she saw Bill floating above her, glowing and emitting a warm radiance.

"Good morning, Shooting Star!" he greeted cheerfully, waving. The demon took a glimpse at her with his one eye, and made a clicking sound with his tongue. "I like your sweater! The color looks _great_ on you!"

Despite the flattering comment, flashbacks from what happened the day before flooded Mabel's mind like an avalanche. She took a few seconds to shake the shocking event off her mind.

"Bill?" she quivered. She was completely befuddled on why Bill was acting so happy-go lucky, especially from what went down yesterday.

 _You don't understand_ was still and will be forever forged into her head.

The dream demon crackled a laugh, and hovered over to take the space beside her. He was surprised and even impressed when he notice Mabel didn't fidget or cringe from his close presence like before.

That meant she was finally open to him.

"Gonna keep this sweet and short, even though I was practicing it all night..." Bill trailed off, fixing his bow tie nervously and his eyes refraining from looking at her's.

Mabel looked at him cautiously, and raised an eyebrow. "...What is it?" she pondered.

Before Mabel could comprehend or question anything, Bill carefully took her hands slowly and held them tightly within his grasp, like it was the one thing he treasured in his entire life.

"Will you, Mabel Pines, mind accompanying me to The Festival of Lanterns?"

And then, so suddenly, Mabel's morning became more interesting.

* * *

 **Review Time!**

 _ **Mando artist and writer  
**_ **Thank you so much, and I will! Glad you're enjoying the story! :'D**

 _ **starrgazzer19  
**_ **THANK YOU SO MUCH! IT FEELS GOOD TO BE BACK IN ONE PIECE AFTER THOSE CURSED EXAMS! AHAHAHA! HA...  
But in all seriousness, I'm super glad you're enjoying the story! And WAIT FANART?! MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS MY FIRST FANART *long gasp*  
Please send it to me once you're finished, I would absolutely love to see it when it's done! Hope you continue reading. ^_^**

 _ **Ellaspen Frost  
**_ **He's getting there *ahem* HE'S REALLY CLOSE *ahem ahem* but yeah, Bill needs a hug.  
WONDER WHO HE'S GOING TO GET IT FROM *horrendous coughing***

 _ **SonderManatee  
**_ **AND NOW YOU CAN CHECK IT OFF! YOU ARE NOW OFFICIALLY ON A REVIEW TIME, MY FRIEND. CONGRATS~!  
AND ALSO thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the story, and I hope you continue reading.**

 ** _Shooting Star (Guest)  
_** **Oh, it definitely means something... and it will be explained verrrryyyy sooooonn...  
** **Glad you're enjoying the story! I hope you continue reading. :')**

 ** _JayFan67  
_** **THANK YOU THANK YOU! ... one more THANK YOU! AHHHHH  
Glad you're enjoying the story, and I hope you continue reading! ^_^**

* * *

 **One more time I have to say I'm terribly sorry. I know updates have been horrendously lacking, but the fic will come to a close pretty soon- despite it just being the beginning of the climax, huehuehue.**  
 **So, I hope you all enjoy on what's to come! I hope you all continue reading future chapters, and reviews are much appreciated!**

 **Stay awesome!**  
 **-TSH**


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